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Mar 22, 2010

Fabric Painted Silhouettes How-to

This was an one of those evolution projects. I knew I wanted to make some silhouettes of my kids. I knew I had some old frames laying around. However, I was unsure which crafty path I was going to take. I started with paper for the silhouettes, then I went to plaid fabric, then I went to paint. You might see variations at a later date, but this was by far the easiest. I love how crisp and clean they turned out.

Supplies you will need:

frames (either old ones you have laying around-painted black OR cheap black frames), enough for all your kiddos

cheap white fabric, cut to fit your frame

pictures of your kiddos profiles

freezer paper

black permanent fabric paint

How-to

I started with old frames. Popped out the back and glass. I laid them out in the sun (yes you heard right, THE SUN came out!), and spray painted them black.

I had taken pictures of my kids profiles. Try to take them so that your kids' profiles are the about the same size. Print them off, the quality DOES NOT matter, so don't waste ink.

Outline each profile with a black pen. Lay under your freezer paper, shiny side down and trace the outline on the smooth side.

Cut out each profile with an exact-o knife. This will be your pattern/stencil.

Before you iron your freezer paper stencil on to your fabric, iron the fabric lightly in halves, so that you can mark your middle point. This will help you center your stencil.

Once you have marked the center, iron on each pattern. Make sure there are no bubbles or gaps between the fabric and the paper.

Start painting. I painted on the edges first to seal the paper on. Then I filled in the middle. After the first coat is on, repeat to desired darkness.

Let it dry for about 5 minutes and then peal off the freezer paper. It will need to dry still for a couple hours.

Once it drys, assemble in your frame. If your white fabric is somewhat thin, you will need to place a piece of white cardstock behind it before you put on the back of the frame.

And there ya have it. In one short day, you have perfect traditional silhouettes of your sweet kiddos. Set them on a shelf, your fireplace, or hang them on the wall. PERFECT!

Heard of linky party? Yeah they are pretty cool and let me link up with other crafty girlies. I am linking this project at:

8 comments:

I have been wanting to make profiles of my family for a while now, and really, your tutorial and idea to do paint on fabric is the BEST. Thanks L.I really wanted to make some little profiles of the grandkids in tiny oval frames as Christmas presents for my inlaws. This would work so well.

Delightful! ...just cute as can be! What a clever girl you are! I will certainly give this a try. I hopped over from Skip to My Lou and I am so happy that I did! Please accept my invitation to drop in at my place one day this week when you get a moment. until later...